B.C. egg producers are appealing to cross-border shoppers to stop buying eggs during their shopping sprees in the U.S.
The BC Egg Marketing Board has launched a public awareness campaign, called Eggonomics, aimed at educating consumers about the toll their cross-border shopping habits are taking on local egg farmers.
"When B.C. shoppers bring U.S. eggs into the province, there are consequences that go well beyond the financial bottom line of egg producers," said marketing board executive director Al Sakalauskas.
"Eggonomics is our way of putting this impact into meaningful terms for consumers."
The marketing board cites a 2012 report by the accounting firm MNP that estimates British Columbians bring 24 million eggs into B.C. from the U.S. annually. A dozen eggs is about $1 cheaper in the U.S. than in B.C.
As part of the campaign, the marketing board has created a life-sized fire truck made entirely out of egg cartons to underscore that the loss in revenue to B.C. producers trickles down and affects government's ability to pay for public services, like firefighting equipment.
"Ultimately, we're talking about a cost savings of less than a dollar per carton on eggs purchased in the United States," Sakalauskas said.
"But for every dollar saved, there is a ripple effect that ends up costing consumers even more. The egg-carton fire truck we constructed is a striking symbol of what remains, for the most part, the hidden cost of cross-border shopping."
The truck will be on display today at the southwest corner of Granville and West Georgia.
